O’ masked heart
steal this hidden houri
from the bold arms of dubiety.
O’ heart, my captain,
sail us swiftly through az-Zuqaq
to the Tibouda promontory
Let me hear her whisper
“Espana”
And save this ship from peril.
Sweetly place her silhouette
anywhere, be it
rippling Arizona dawn
Or Dusted Andalusian sunset
Hold her henna’d hands
A kiss for every fingertip
in a lighthouse
on Ras Uarc.
Shall we die here, my love and I,
or forever live
alive,
apart.
Allow me to be her thief,
her gentle highwayman
in whose embrace of certainty she’ll find
a heart that too,
is contraband.
